


Cravings

by Calchexxis



Series: Saintsbride [3]
Category: Warhammer 40.000
Genre: Adeptus Sororitas - Freeform, F/F, Femslash, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Lesbian Sex, Lesbians in Space, More plot than porn, POV Lesbian Character, Romance, Sex, Smut, Useless Lesbians
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:35:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22534078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calchexxis/pseuds/Calchexxis
Summary: Inquisitor Greyfax, along with Celestine, a small army of Sisters of Battle, and the Ophelian Crusade of the Black Templars Astartes chapter are in transit through the Warp to the lost Shrine World of San Leor, the mother world of the Sisters of Battle where Saint Alicia Dominica and her Companions were born.During the long transit time, Greyfax and Celestine find themselves with plenty of opportunities to spend quality time together, but throughout their precious, stolen moments, the two women know full well that they are heading towards a world that is almost certainly swallowed by war. With the traitor Frateris Templar of a fallen Cardinal already deployed to the warplost Shrine World, an almost-certain daemon incursion, and throne knows what else, they two servants of the Imperium cling to one another in the hopes that they both emerge alive.
Relationships: Inquisitor Katarinya Greyfax/Saint Celestine
Series: Saintsbride [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1599868
Comments: 11
Kudos: 68





	Cravings

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place during Chapter 3 of the audio drama: Our Martyred Lady, between the departure from Ophelia VII and the Shrine World of San Leor.

I have no love of warp travel, nor do I think any healthy-minded Imperial citizens should. To traverse the Sea of Souls is to tread close enough to the Ruinous Powers to thumb your nose at them, and while I have no respect for such entities I do have a healthy wariness of their power.

That we are not only hurtling through the warp now but cleaving our way towards the seemingly impenetrable storm that surrounds San Leor only adds to my discomfort. With that said, quartering aboard Marshal Gaardhelm’s strike cruiser has been a surprisingly enjoyable experience.

Not that the quarters were anything but spartan, which was precisely what I had expected of an Astartes vessel.

No, my relatively positive outlook came from the fact that I had contrived the billeting so as put mine and Celestine’s quarters adjacent to one another. The result of the arrangement meant that it was a relatively simple matter to slip between rooms, one way or the other, and allow us to spend most nights in one another’s arms.

It is the most time we’ve been permitted to share since our clandestine relationship had begun.

“You know,” Celestine says as she pulls me a little closer to her beneath the blankets, “I always tell my beloved sisters that service is its own reward.”

“Isn’t that supposed to be the case?” I reply with a small smile, looping my arms over her shoulders as I do. “Strength enough to be of service to Him On Earth is its own gift, isn’t it?”

“It is,” she agrees, chuckling quietly, “but that as may be, I’m not turning down the reward I’ve found in you, my dear Inquisitor.”

I pull myself up to kiss her, and Celestine hums in soft approval as she returns the affection. It is slow and honey-sweet, and her lips press to mine with a kind of lingering touch that suggests how little she wants to pull away.

The feeling, fortunately, is mutual.

_Un _fortunately, we did eventually have to surface for air.__

____

____

As we part I take the opportunity to turn around and back into her, reaping full advantage of her greater stature.

An Inquisitor I may be, but constantly having the weight of the Rosette on my shoulders meant that, when I was alone with Celestine, I rather preferred to be the little spoon.

Not that I would ever admit that to anyone else.

I permitted Celestine to see a side of me that I kept carefully hidden from the rest of the galaxy. A part of me that I had, for many years, studiously kept buried.

Inquisitors are not permitted softness, after all.

I had once told Celestine that neither I, nor the Imperium at large, could afford me my happiness, and I still hold that my words are true, and that’s why I must steal it. Every moment spent in Celestine’s arms is stolen, every hour spent in bed with her is stolen, and the same was true of every lingering touch and too-long gaze, and I begrudged every missed opportunity to steal another moment, hour, or touch.

A shiver runs down my spine as Celestine playfully kisses along my neck and across my shoulders, only to hug me tightly before lavishing my cheeks with kisses as well.

For a Living Saint, Celestine was more playful in bed than one might expect.

“How much longer can this persist, do you think?” Celestine asks as she settles down and curled around me. “We must surely be closing in on San Leor.”

“Another half-week standard, I think,” I reply dourly. “Maybe a bit more if the tides turn, but no more than a week all told.”

Not nearly enough time, in my opinion.

If the Warp were merciful it would swallow us for a year or more, only to spit us out with only a week having passed in the Real. Such had been known to happen, of course, but it was a rarity, and more often such vessels never emerged at all.

But a woman can dream.

“Half-week or a week til we reach the Mother World of the Adeptus Sororitas,” Catherine speaks thoughtfully as she rests her chin on the crown of my head. She likes it there for some reason. “What follows then?”

“Best case scenario?” I muse dryly. “We rescue the Shrine World from the Warp triggering the ascension of the God-Emperor back to his fleshly form, he causes the Cicatrix Maledictum to cave in on itself, reuniting the Imperium, and for good measure the Eye of Terror collapses taking Abaddon and all his miserable brood with it.”

Celestine bursts into laughter, her fingers playing along my abdomen as she trembles with mirth.

The sound brings a wide smile to my face. There are very few things more precious to me than Celestine’s warm, lovely laughter, and there was very little I would not do to hear it. With that in mind, I have done my best to develop a sense of humor, which is coming along reasonably well, I think.

“But honestly, my love,” Celestine continues after mastering herself.

“Honestly?” I sigh and lay my hands over hers, tracing the scars on her knuckles with my fingers idly. “We’ll probably find a war… the Cardinal sent mortal troops through the Warpstorm for some reason, and one generally does not deploy military forces unless there is a war to wage.”

“Agreed,” Celestine replies cautiously. “But against what?”

“Could be against another Chaos cult,” I venture, and Celestine nods thoughtfully.

“God-Emperor knows they fight as much amongst themselves as they do against us,” she agrees, “which is a blessing, I suppose.”

“If only the Imperium could manage to not do the same for a few years, then we might finally make some progress,” I add sullenly, and Celestine sighs as she hugs me again.

“You’re going maudlin again, my love,” Celestine chides me.

“I prefer to think of it as being realistic,” I counter. “The Imperium is dissolving… Warp that, it’s already been cut clean in half.”

“We must trust that those beyond the Great Rift will persevere,” She replies softly, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of my head. “And we must, in turn, do all that we can for the Imperium Sanctus.”

I sigh quietly, then nod.

“How do you do it?” I ask after a moment before turning to look over my shoulder at her. “How do you keep to that belief that the galaxy will right itself?”

“I do not believe the galaxy will right itself,” Celestine answers with a quirked smile. “But do I believe in the God-Emperor of Mankind, and I also believe that He has gifted his loyal subjects with the fire and the faith to right the galaxy themselves.”

I turn to face Celestine and rest my forehead against her chest, breathing deeply of her clean, subtle scent.

“Celestine, my heart,” I begin quietly. “May I ask you something… difficult?”

She brings a hand up to stroke the back of my head gently, her fingers playing through the brown strands with a casual and tender familiarity.

“You may ask me anything, Katta,” she says.

I take a deep breath and pull back, meeting her clear, emerald gaze.

“Do you resent my suspicions?” I ask, and I can feel my throat tighten as I put the question to her. “About your nature? Your powers? Your faith?”

“It is your duty to be suspicious,” Celestine’s reply comes quietly.

“That’s not what I asked, Celly,” I reach out and lay my palms on her cheeks. “Do you?”

She sighs and leans down to nuzzle her nose against mine.

“I don’t resent you, my love,” Celestine replies carefully. “You are who you must be, and I cannot resent that… I love you for your diligence and your dedication, and if that means I must also occasionally endure your scrutiny, I shant complain.”

“I would never have you endure me,” A sharp pain clenches in my chest at the notion. “I would never have you be forced into-”

Celestine silences me with her lips, guiding my chin up so she can kiss me as tenderly and warmly as ever she does. I hold on to her, my hands grasping at her arms and gripping tight as I feel something that I knew no Inquisitor of any Ordo could afford to feel well up in my chest:

Uncertainty.

To wield to authority of the God-Emperor is to wield the most absolute power in the Imperium second to Him On Earth, and to be uncertain in that power was… well, it was closing on heresy itself.

And yet, Celestine draws that uncertainty out in me, and I do not know how to address that in my heart.

So instead I simply kiss the woman I love so dearly.

“Never change, Katta,” Celestine whispers as we part and she pulls me tight against her. “You are brave, resourceful, and, yes, you are very occasionally a bit of an intolerable bitch.”

I snort out a laugh as Celestine leans in to kiss my cheek fondly.

“And I would have you no other way,” she finishes, brushing her fingers over my face.

“You can be a touch sanctimonious yourself, my dear,” I retort, to which Celestine smirks.

“I am a Saint and, as I recall, that is my remit.”

I can’t help it, I laugh. I’m not one to laugh easily or often, though in my defense there is precious little humor in my line of work, but despite that, Celestine never fails to draw out what I tentatively identify as my humanity, which is ironic given her own otherworldly nature.

So I kiss her again.

My hands trail across her body finding all the familiar hills and curves of her back. I love touching her and to my delight she loves to be touched by me just as much. Having her under my hands is an indescribable comfort in these dark days… knowing that I have a light awaiting me lifts a nameless weight from my heart.

Celestine laughs softly as she takes control of our affections, rolling me to my back and pinning me to the bed. I laugh as well, struggling playfully as she pours kisses across my face again and again, the way she always does because she knows how it makes me feel.

“Stop!” I laugh, pulling against her iron grip on my wrists. “I am an _Inquisitor _and I order you to stop!”__

____

____

“Oh do you now?” Celestine chuckles, pausing as she smiles mischievously at me. “And if I do not?”

“Living Saint or no, I have the authority to punish you,” I say flatly.

“But you would need to speak to do so, wouldn’t you?”

I raise a single, imperious eyebrow at her tone.

“Ye~s? Your point?”

“Well…” Celestine leans down until her lips are inches from my ear and whispers, “what if I give you something else to do with your mouth?”

My cheeks burn scarlet as Celestine draws back, rising to her full height and letting go of my wrists only to take a grip on my hair and press me down as she moves her hips squarely over my face.

Whatever words are on my tongue are just as quickly forgotten as I find a much more pleasurable use for it. Celestine’s dripping core settles across my lips, and I moan in gratified satisfaction as I slide my tongue in and out of her, gripping her hips as she rocks herself back and force against my mouth.

The sounds of Celestine’s labored breathing as I lap at her sex sends what feels like electric currents through my limbs. I reach up and grip her rolling hips, squeezing and dragging my fingers down the pliable flesh as I devote myself entirely to pleasing my lover.

With a sudden spasm of bliss, Celestine lets out a sharp cry as my tongue slides over something much more sensitive, and liquid drenches my lips. I eagerly take what she gives, relishing the familiar taste of her.

“A~h, Katta…” Celestine moans softly, grinding her hips against me again. “My love… my Katta.”

Hers… always hers.

I make a small noise of annoyance as she lifts herself from me, but to my delight she’s only repositioning herself.

A moment later her hips are back across my face as she maneuvers herself between my legs so we are perfectly mirrored.

I gasp as her tongue slid along the sensitive folds of my sex, and I hike my legs to lock around her head and draw her closer. At the same time, I go back to my favorite place in the galaxy, and begin to lick and lap at it.

I was so close, and Celestine knew it as she hit all my favorites spots.

“Oh, _f-frak _, Celly I’m-!” I cry out wordlessly, my toes pointing as climax across her face.__

____

____

She follows moments later as I bury myself against her wet heat, licking as furiously as I can manage while I grind myself mindlessly against the source of the deafening pleasure assaulting my senses.

I lose track of time after that, but when I come back to myself I’m ensconced firmly in Celestine’s powerful embrace precisely the way I like best.

It seems to me as if the air is saturated with the scent of us, and the thought makes me smile as I relax against her. She must have noticed my small movements because a moment later I feel her lips pressing against my shoulders and neck.

“Mm… that was fun,” I laugh softly, and Celestine makes a quiet murr of agreement.

“We ought to do that again,” I remark.

Another hum ripples across my skin where she kisses along the back of my neck.

“Are you quite done back there?”

“Never,” Celestine says, her voice quiet as she nips at my neck, earning a tiny, pleased noise from me before she kisses the same spot. “I will never be done kissing you, my love.”

“I don’t mind the sound of that,” I reply happily.

I hiss softly as Celestine scrapes her teeth along my shoulder before kissing up to my neck.

“You are irresistible to me, Katta, did you know that?”

“I had an inkling.”

Celestine growls deep in the back of her throat and it sends a thrill down my spine that comes roaring back up to the surface as she bites down just hard enough at the crook of my neck for me to feel it.

The soft warmth of her tongue takes the place of her teeth a moment later.

“Tell me,” Celestine began. “Do you even know what you do to me?” She kisses my neck up to my chin, then turns my head to stare into my eyes.

I am captured by the fire I see there.

“Do you know how hard it is to resist simply taking you into my arms every time I see you?”

I turn about in her arms and take her face in my hands, pausing a moment to admire those crystal-clear, green eyes of hers before kissing her with all the fervor I can manage.

“As hard,” I gasp between kisses, “as it is for me,” I kiss her again, “to stop from doing the same!”

“I love you, Katta,” Celestine whispers softly against my lips. “Til the end of all things, I love you…”

“As I love you, my heart,” I answer, and my chest aches with the weight of my words.

“After this…”

I pull back to look up at her. We had not yet spoken of what would happen after this crisis in part because we both knew there was a possibility that one or both of us might perish in the conflict. On the heels of that knowledge I was well aware that we both hoped it would be ourselves and not the other, or that we otherwise might fall together.

“Yes?”

“Once all is done,” Celestine says quietly, “and the Ministorum set as reasonably aright as we can manage…”

“Celestine…”

“Just let me finish!” She begs, and I grimace but nod.

She sighs and kisses my forehead before continuing.

“I want to have you afterward.”

I blush at that.

“Well I’m certain we can find some quiet time to-”

“Not like that you lecher,” Celestine laughs wanly before taking my hand, drawing it up to her lips, and kissing the knuckle of my ring finger.

“Like this.”

My breath catches hard in my throat.

“I want you to be mine,” Celestine whispers as she kisses down to my wrist. “Promise me.”

“Are you serious, Celly?!”

“Promise me!”

“There’s no guarantee either us will-!”

“Katta!”

I tense. I want to answer her so badly, I want to fall into her arms and say yes as many times as she wants me to, but…

“You know I want to,” I all but bite the words out. “You know my dream… but how can we swear to each other like that? How can we and still have our oaths?”

Celestine shakes her head, then kisses me again. “Our oaths are why I want this, Katta.”

She let out a deep sigh, and pressed her forehead to mine.

“I want to know that we are bound by more than a secret love,” Celestine speaks with a quiet fervor. “I want to know that I have sworn my heart to you…” her last word was choked with tears, as were those that followed, “if you would give your heart to _me _.”__

____

____

“ _Celestine, _” my voice comes out ragged and wet, “must I always repeat myself?”__

____

____

I pull her close, gripping her hand and pressing it open palmed to my chest.

“You _are _my heart.”__

____

____

Whatever words remaining in her are drowned out by a quiet sob, and I pull her in fully to rest her head against my chest as, for once, it was I who cradled her. Guilt gnawed at me, too, as I realised then what it was I had forgotten… that despite being a Saint and an immortal warrior, if only in the most technical sense, Celestine was terribly, painfully _human. _She had to be, for it was the human that was blessed by the God-Emperor.__

____

____

Celestine was more than a Saint.

She was a woman.

“When this is over,” she spoke raggedly, and this time I took time to listen more carefully, “I want us to be bound such that even when we are apart we will know that where one fights, it is ever with the other’s name on her lips,” letting out a deep, slow breath, Celestine raises her head to kiss me, and I taste the salt of her tears before we part. 

“I want you to know that if I die, my last thoughts shall be of she who I love most and-” Celestine chokes for a moment, the first time I’ve ever truly seen her do so, “-and should you die, know that I will mourn you til the day I am called to death for the final time.”

This is it.

The moment when I fall fully and entirely from the woman I was when I emerged from Trazyn’s prison onto the wartorn surface of Cadia. The sound and certain Puritan Inquisitor called Katarinya Greyfax was fading entirely, and all that was in her place was Katta… Celestine’s Katta.

“I promise,” I whisper the words like a prayer.

A bond like this was a grave danger. It was like purposefully manufacturing a weak spot in a suit of otherwise flawless powered armour, and yet I could not tell her no.

I did not want to.

“I promise,” I repeat quietly, “that after all of this, I will bind myself to you.”

“Thank you,” her voice is painfully brittle, and for another hour we just lay there, clutching one another.

We lay there until the alarm klaxons sound through the ship, and the vox-shredded voice of a nav-servitor pierces our carefully maintained sphere of ignorance.

// _WARNING. WARNING. ALL HANDS BRACE FOR EMERGENCY TRANSLATION. _//__

____

____

“Not even the half-week,” I mutter bitterly as I lean in and press my lips to Celestine’s before sitting up.

“Such is our lot, my love,” Celestine’s reply is no less sullen. “The Emperor points and we obey-”

“-through the warp and far away,” I completed the old verse with a wry grin, "yes, I know the song, too."

We share a quick sluicing of water in the wash chamber of the quarters, then dress, don our armour and vestment, and with them our masks.

The masks of Katarinya Greyfax, Inquisitor of the Ordo Hereticus, and that of Saint Celestine, Revered Sister of Our Martyred Lady.

“I will leave first,” Celestine gives me an apologetic look. “Follow a few moments after.”

“I know the routine,” I reply testily, and she laughs softly before turning to me and pulling me in for one last kiss before we go to war.

I throw my arms around Celestine and kiss her as if I would never know the touch of her lips again.

For all I knew, I wouldn’t.

“To war, then?” I say as we part, and Celestine nods.

“As always and ever.”

She turns, letting me go only reluctantly as she strides towards the door, but pauses as she reaches for the access rune, and turns back to me.

“I love you, Katta,” she says with a wan smile, and return it.

“As I love you, my heart.”

“Watch my back til the end?”

I chuckle, and nod.

“Til the very end.”


End file.
